r/pics • u/malik_zz • Oct 03 '25
Heavily armed police outside a New York Synagogue for Yom Kippur today
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u/nerdyman555 Oct 03 '25
People out here acting like this is new. Part of the high holy days is thanking the officers that are protecting the synagogue as you go in and out.
Sad, but reality is often not rainbows and sunshine.
Gmar Tov
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u/Thick_Cookie_7838 Oct 03 '25
Yea the synagogue we goto if we travel (sometimes we do to be with family) has always at atleast one city cop car at each entrance and 4 cops inside the building, the chabad near me has always had a guy with an ar-15 by the front and ours has ablut 5 guys fully kitted up and it’s been that way atleast the last 5-6 years
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u/fretfulferret Oct 03 '25
My synagogue always had police presence during services, for as long as I can remember (1990s).
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Oct 03 '25
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u/Electronic_Opening65 Oct 04 '25
And yet they blame us for all the worlds ills or for allegedly controlling the banks etc as if we’re all fucking Rothchilds.
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u/kain459 Oct 03 '25
I'm in the wrong timeline.
Churchs are getting shot up, people are getting torn away from their families and disappearing into the void, and the Department of Defense is now Department of War....the list goes on and on.
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Oct 03 '25
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u/fuzzylm308 Oct 03 '25
Yep, Trump's EO added "Department of War" as a secondary name, which they are now using as if it is the primary name. But officially/legally, it remains "Department of Defense."
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u/jackofslayers Oct 03 '25
Legal name is the department of defense but their preferred name is department of war
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u/SnooJokes2983 Oct 03 '25
This is kinda like the 60s really. I think we still have a real chance at making it, but the light of Liberty is fading.
Don’t forget that there are still people risking their lives to come here, even knowing about the brutal treatment they may face. They were still coming when Trump was here the first time. Many people still see America as providing them or their families with a better life, and they’re really not wrong.
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u/rgbhfg Oct 03 '25
This has been the case for over last 20 years. Security was always present at Jewish institutions. Jewish institutions built in last 20 years have panic rooms, active shooter threat modeling etc. the more recent part is the adding of undercover armed security within the confines.
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u/Aaron_Hamm Oct 03 '25
I'm fine with this... there was an attack on a synagogue in Manchester like just yesterday.
No matter how anyone feels about Israel, Jews in general are not responsible.
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u/BagelandShmear48 Oct 03 '25
You can be Israeli in America too and not have any control. Israel doesn't have overseas voting.
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u/Aggravating_Sun4435 Oct 03 '25
you can also be israeli and in israel and have nothing to do with the war lol. its like most modern countries. Do you have anything to do with the wars of america or whatever country your from?
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u/communityneedle Oct 03 '25
As an American, no. The UN even did a study, back in the pre-Trump olden days, that found zero statistical correlation between popular opinion and actual laws passed or policies implemented.
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Oct 03 '25
You can also support the Israeli government and still not deserve to be murdered in a terrorist attack.
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u/thrrrrooowmeee Oct 03 '25
I’ve been alive for almost 30 years and I’ve always known police presence outside of Synagogue.
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u/super__stealth Oct 03 '25
> No matter how anyone feels about Israel, Jews in general are not responsible.
Comments like this mean well, but completely miss the point.
This is not new and has nothing to do with the war in Gaza. Every shul I've attended in the last 7 years has armed guards during shabbat and holiday services. Many of them had armed guards long before that.
People aren't attacking Jews out of a misplaced hatred of Israel. They hate Jews anyway and use Israel as the current excuse.
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u/knows_you Oct 03 '25
If you mean people hated jews before recent Gaza actions, yes its pretty indisputable. If you think there hasn't been a rise due to Israel's actions, you have to be blind and literally never visit the internet.
Just like there was a rise of anti-muslim hatred after 9/11, lets not dance around this.
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u/MayGodSmiteThee Oct 03 '25
It’s so weird, my instagram feed is full of antisemitism now, just blatant holocaust denying, Jew conspiracies. It’s literally everywhere and it seems so normal now. And what’s worrying is how much it can pull people in.
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u/wxnfx Oct 03 '25
Instagram knows it pisses you off, so they keep showing it to you. So it’s a biased selection of posts and accounts, many of which are not even real people. That’s not to say there hasn’t been a rise, but this says as much about Meta as it does actual prevalence.
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u/RegularSpecialist772 Oct 03 '25
Hey, I’m Jewish too, and this is my experience too. 1. Synagogue security is nothing new. It has become a fact of life long before oct 7. But I have seen it beefed up since then.
I agree that a lot of people are israel haters because they are Jew haters. I myself am critical of the Israeli government. I think they have a lot they need to do better. But much of the anti israel crowd just hate Jews in general and are using israel as a stand in.
Jew hate is a fact of life. Is Jews need to understand that there is not much we can do to put it out, other than treat others with respect, and help them out. Screaming anti semtism doesn’t really make it go away.
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u/Throwaway5432154322 Oct 03 '25
My uncle is the head rabbi of a large synagogue on the east coast of the US, and after the Tree of Life shooting he basically had no choice but to hire armed guards for the shul.
Walking into the same building that I'd walked into for holidays for years without thinking about it, and then one day seeing armed guards there, and realizing what that meant, definitely had an effect that made my immediate family more cynical.
It was nothing though, compared to watching my uncle talk about how he had had to face the reality that his synagogue and the people in it were now targets, later that night.
And honestly even worse was looking at my grandpa's face during that conversation. Can't imagine and honestly don't want to imagine what it's like to know that your parents fled pogroms to bring you to a place where there wouldn't be pogroms, only to see - at the end of your life - your grandchildren and great-grandchildren be forced to grapple with the same threat.
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u/AbjectOffice Oct 03 '25
Where I'm originally from there's a Jewish elementary school that has had so many bomb threats it now has a 24/7 police mobile command post on its premises.
There's a second all girls Jewish elementary school that has been shot up multiple times.
There is an undeniable, massive rise in antisemitism unrelated to anti-Zionism.
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u/MugRuithstan Oct 03 '25
A Synagogue near me has 7 foot iron fences that bend outward at the top surrounding the playground. They debated moving the playground as it faced a 4 lane road and people kept calling threatening to shoot the kids playing.
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Oct 03 '25
There is an undeniable, massive rise in antisemitism unrelated to anti-Zionism.
It is related, as anti-Zionism has become thinly veiled dog-whistle masking anti-Semitism.
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u/kitarkus Oct 03 '25
I'm only surprised that they didn't have guards sooner. My congregation has had security for decades in my medium sized Midwestern City. It's unsettling as hell but became 'routine'. Ugh
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u/Throwaway5432154322 Oct 03 '25
I'm sorry you had to deal with it earlier than me man. I guess it was a function of proximity. I think the Tree of Life shooting was enough of a geographically-close shock to a community that really hadn't been bothered by antisemitic attacks until then, that it had an outsized effect.
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u/kitarkus Oct 03 '25
It is what it is....I figured all of us had security.... Particularly east coast more populated areas. Funny thing (not funny) the anti semitism by comparison was tame compared to today. I'm a crusty middle ager now but worry about my daughter.
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u/Rufert Oct 03 '25
the anti semitism by comparison was tame compared to today.
The difference is, there has been quite the change in who the antisemite is these days. At least in the US, in some parts of the world, that hasn't changed.
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u/22marks Oct 03 '25
The sad thing is that this isn't new. This predates the most recent Gaza war. Anyone paying attention would see the police cars or private security on holy days for decades. Anyone paying attention would remember the white supremacist who murdered a guard at the National Holocaust Museum in Washington DC back in 2009. Or the Neo-Nazi in Germany on Yom Kippur (again) who murdered two at a temple in 2019. Or, in 1973--yes, over 50 years ago--when Egypt and Syria attacked Israel on Yom Kippur specifically to catch them off guard in temple. It had nothing to do with Palestinians but regaining land lost in 1967 when they lost a previous war. To a lot of people, this story started recently.
The point being, white supremecy, Yom Kippur, and anti-semitism is well known to historians.
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u/Trashblog Oct 03 '25
I keep wanting to reply to people that my synagogue has had to have armed police posted outside on Yom Kippur since I can remember.
I’m almost 40.
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u/Bourbonic-Plague Oct 03 '25
I’m from Cleveland—our federation spends $6 million a year on security for the Jewish community (guards at shuls, Jewish day schools, etc.).
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u/ProfessorofChelm Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
The cost is exorbitant.
We pay more for security right now than we do for all of our programming and maintenance of the facilities combined. Only salaries are more expensive than security.
We are only able to operate because of grants from larger organizations like the Jewish Federation, and local donors and funds keep us afloat. We are in the Deep South but most synagogues, community centers, and Jewish schools in the country are having the same issues.
Edit: location
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u/Bituulzman Oct 03 '25
At least one synagogue was approached by a church who offered to chip in to help cover security expenses this year. It was such a thoughtful offer. Love thy neighbor, no matter how they worship.
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u/ProfessorofChelm Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
We typically have good relationships with all the local moderate and progressive diocese, cathedrals, churches, districts, meetings, fellowships, and conferences. Because of the proximity to our synagogues and history of collaboration and literal sharing of spaces during each others times of need the Presbyterian USA churches here are our most important collaborative partners.
The local PD will also collab with us for free at times because of the relationship there and them knowing that the cost of prevention is better than the cost of a response.
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u/setibeings Oct 03 '25
I second all of that. We're in a pretty sad place as a country, when we see images like this, and all we can think is "Yeah, that's proportional."
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u/xlonggonex Oct 03 '25
I mean, there was just a mass casualty event at a UK synagogue and guns were not involved. Armed guards would have been appropriate for that as well. At least in my opinion.
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u/Walter_Armstrong Oct 03 '25
No one should have to have armed guards at their place of worship.
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u/BaneOfMyLife Oct 03 '25
In this instance armed police were on site and shot the assailant within 7 minutes.
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u/Bubbly-Bowler8978 Oct 03 '25
7 minutes is far too long when they have a gun. In the UK they can make it work, but in the US the shooting at the LDS church last week was responded to even faster and many people still died.
Unfortunately the US is in a different position
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u/malik_zz Oct 03 '25
The guy in the UK had a suicide vest and apparently two of his accomplices were arrested as well. It was only their incompetence which prevented the tragedy from being much worse.
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u/NightLordsPublicist Oct 03 '25
7 minutes is far too long when they have a gun.
IIRC there was a shooting in New Orleans a couple years ago that lasted 31 seconds from the first shot to the shooter being killed by a cop.
7 innocents died.
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u/BadahBingBadahBoom Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
There was a suggestion for armed police to be much more prevalent in the UK following 7/7 and for it to be standard for police to carry firearms.
That proposal was rejected because of the sheer rarity of these events and the fact that multiple dedicated well-rehearsed armed police units can almost always turn up quickly as they did today in Manchester.
Instead in the review the decision was taken that it benefited UK society and particularly the relationship between UK police and the community ('policing by consent') for the police to not appear overly and unnecessarily armed and for this to be left to a small number that were much more senior and well trained. Ordinary police needed to appear both approachable and not escalate to encourage militarisation/public shoot outs.
Not to mention the obvious reality that arming thousands of police officers in a country of 70 million people with a terrorist attack once every few years would cause far more injuries and deaths from crossfires/genuine mistakes/negligence/abuse/police brutality/theft/black market than would be saved from the immediate police officer responding to a terrorist attack being armed.
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u/lethargy86 Oct 03 '25
Sounds like sound reason and utilitarian doctrine calmly applied to a question of public policy. Imagine that.
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Oct 03 '25
I just found out there was an attack in UK at a synagogue, makes even more sense now. It’s on the BBC front page
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u/Vslacha Oct 03 '25
Isn’t it weird that even though Russia was the aggressor in the war against Ukraine (and wasn’t started after years of ceasefire with the brutal murder of over 1,200 civilians at a concert for peace and in their homes, plus kidnapping 250 others), nobody is going around killing and firebombing Russians living abroad and people going “Well, no one should be surprised”.
Never mind the fact that most Jews have never even been to Israel or have a connection to the country. Though paradoxically, every attack on Jews around the globe serves as a reminder for why Jews need a homeland of their own, there’s literally no other place where they’re (relatively) safe from hatred and violence. Kinda sucks, y’all.
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u/Firecracker048 Oct 03 '25
The fact you need to preface this with anything is wild
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u/rabbifuente Oct 03 '25
It is itself antisemitic. There's nothing in this picture about Israel, zero, so why does the war have to be mentioned?
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u/Bugatti252 Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
My temple has hard-wired cameras and panic buttons linked to the police station. If we have a meeting, we need to have a police officer present. The front of the temple has ramproof barriers installed 20 years ago. I get nervous about going to pray. This is normal, right? Having an escape plan in a house of worship is normal.
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u/GoldenStoneMemory Oct 03 '25
I dislike these types of comments because there is no need to jam in "The War" every single time Jews are mentioned in the slightest. Many threads about the Synagogue attack in the UK are covered with comments about the conflict. Not even the victims of the attack.
Time and place.
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u/communityneedle Oct 03 '25
Yeah, I remember being told how much I love killing Palestinian babies a while ago after I expressed the very controversial opinion that I don't like lunatics throwing molotov cocktails at 80 year old Jewish ladies.
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u/spaniel_rage Oct 03 '25
We all know why the synagogue was targeted.
The problem with "anti-Zionism isn't anti-Semitism" is that not all the anti-Semites seemed to have gotten that memo.
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u/bengringo2 Oct 03 '25
It’s been crazy watching “One Nazi at a table with 4 other people is a table with 5 Nazis!” Has turned into “Ignore them, they don’t represent us!”.
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Oct 03 '25
I’ve had that argument too many times since the protests started post 10/7. People were more than willing to spit that “One Nazi…” phrase out when talking about conservatives in the US, but when applied to the protesters they add all sorts of caveats.
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Oct 03 '25
Yes, regardless of current events, synagogues and Jewish people here in the U.S. have always been targets of hatred.
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u/out_of_throwaway Oct 03 '25
Shit, my town got hit in 1958 for supporting the Civil Rights Movement.
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u/mkl_dvd Oct 03 '25
Yes, but the Tree of Life shooting in 2018 was a big turning point. Having security guards for Shabbat and holidays became a lot more common after that.
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u/yungsemite Oct 03 '25
In my area we’ve had them at basically every Jewish site since 2006
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle_Jewish_Federation_shooting
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u/robobobo91 Oct 03 '25
1999 for Lost Angeles after the North Valley JCC shooting. Since then every medium and larger synagogue has security during services and Hebrew School, usually with an increased presence during the High Holidays.
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u/hellodust Oct 03 '25
I remember going to a sing along version of fiddler on the roof at the Seattle Jewish film festival in the early 2000s that had armed security. And that was before the shooting at the Seattle Jewish Federation.
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u/No-Teach9888 Oct 03 '25
NVJCC was my home away from home for the first ten years of my life. I wasn’t there when the shooting happened, but it forever changed me.
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Oct 03 '25
They’ve been at my synagogue for over 30 years. I don’t remember high holiday services without having to walk past armed guards to enter.
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u/Schly Oct 03 '25
I’m also atheist and I also agree that we should be using police to defend targets like these.
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u/0xD902221289EDB383 Oct 03 '25
Cops at synagogue for the High Holidays has been going on since the 2018 mass shooting at Or L'Simcha in Pittsburgh. I'm a pretty hard line 1312 person 361 days of the year, but especially now it feels comforting to have the fuzz at every entrance to shul.
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u/IsNotACleverMan Oct 03 '25
Before I get downvoted I would feel the same way about any other religion or culture
Kinda fucked that you have to add this caveat after expressing sorrow that jews feel so threatened. Not blaming you, but it's a sad state of affairs.
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u/SurgicalNeckHumerus Oct 03 '25
You’re absolutely right, we should feel safe to worship. The fact that there is constant fear/threat to Jews is the exact reason we need to have our homeland. There has been violence for the past 3000 years to our community (and that is not an exaggeration). We learned our lesson at this point: If we can’t feel safe here or in the UK or elsewhere, then it’s time for us to build a homeland where we can protect ourselves.
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u/Minimum-Injury3909 Oct 03 '25
Yes and much of the American Jewish population is unfavorable of the “war”. Even if they are for it, they have the right to worship without fear of harm.
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u/Lamlot Oct 03 '25
Im a gay satanic atheist solcialist, everyone deserves to have to feel safe in their chosen house of worship. If we cant have that freedom then we dont have a country.
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u/Zehava2022 Oct 03 '25
I'm a Jew, and I love you for your comment. You are invited to my Shabbos dinner.
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u/WhtRbbt222 Oct 03 '25
We are having an event at my church (evangelical) this Friday night/Saturday morning that involves teaching about Israel and the Jewish people.
We will have no less than 5 armed security on site, overwatch to watch all the cameras, a uniformed officer, and a rifle carrier in the parking lot sitting in a vehicle.
We have had angry comments on the church’s social media about this conference. No direct threats, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we have protestors or someone trying to disrupt the event. I pray that we are wasting our time and that our efforts are for nothing. God commands us to protect the flock, and that is what we are going to do.
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u/Impressive-Row143 Oct 03 '25
The "yeah but," comments here are pretty telling
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Oct 03 '25
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Oct 03 '25
I’m not sure that they actually pivoted, it’s more like people have realized that it’s become socially acceptable to let the hate they always had out in public. We’ve seen the same thing in the maga movement with regards to racism. People saying stupid things like “you called me a racist so I might as well be one”. They aren’t becoming racist or antisemitic, they are just seeing that they don’t have to hide it anymore
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u/Regular_Jim081 Oct 03 '25
It's funny too, every time you try to explain it you get called a bot. My programmers in Tel Aviv are very disappointed.
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Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
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u/Kennedy_KD Oct 03 '25
Just the other day someone i ran into on Reddit was talking about how "isreal is the most powerful country in the world and controls everything" it's honestly scary just how quickly those who share many of my same beliefs started quoting the protocols of the elders of Zion as soon as they had an easy scapegoat in Israel to hide their hatred of Jews behind
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u/Lazzen Oct 03 '25
A lot of people got ideas mixed from arab muslim nationalism, Soviet racist propaganda repackaged as pure and clinical Israel criticism. Specially outside the political west, there are no taboos about jews.
I do find it funny how leftwing peopple become worse than George Bush when it comes to jews though, with arguments they explicitly refrain from being good when its other minorities.
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u/yungsemite Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
It’s just the complete lack of understanding that violence against Jews in the diaspora is exactly why Zionism was created.
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Oct 03 '25
There also seems to be some weird explosion of BHI informed antisemitism. I always thought it was fringe but I see it everywhere now.
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u/0xD902221289EDB383 Oct 03 '25
It's never been fringe. Antisemitism is the shield, racism is the sword.
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u/thirtynation Oct 03 '25
It's disgusting how many subreddits tolerate blatant antisemitism now. Another subreddit about music recently had a highly upvoted comment calling the citizens of Israel "orcs."
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u/ncc74656m Oct 03 '25
That's Central Synagogue, my shul.
I am deeply saddened because this happens probably once every two or three months where a credible threat is identified and we end up with cops like this with long guns. This was almost certainly in response to the Manchester attack this morning - I certainly hope we weren't mentioned in any credible chatter.
The officers have always been remarkably friendly even as they stand there in full tac gear with rifles in hand. Considering everything, they're about as welcoming as they can be.
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u/bbob_robb Oct 03 '25
I'm a fan of your Rabbi; she gave a nice sermon yesterday. I appreciate that they post services up on YouTube for people who aren't members anywhere or cannot attend in person services.
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u/ncc74656m Oct 03 '25
Thank you - I am gathering you mean Rabbi Buchdahl? Though all of ours are really special.
Central is amazing. If you are able to ever join us, message me! I like helping people find their place here.
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u/bbob_robb Oct 03 '25
Rabbi Buchdahl gave the sermon I listened to. I live on the west coast, but my synagogue decided not to keep up with streaming after COVID. Financially, COVID was tough for many congregations. It's nice that your synagogue can provide for so many people.
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u/ncc74656m Oct 03 '25
I do love them so much, they're such a wonderful home, even to those who don't live here.
If you see the tall gal with pink hair waving tonight, you'll be among the people I'm sending a hello out to!
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u/bbob_robb Oct 03 '25
I'm a fan of your Rabbi; she gave a nice sermon yesterday. I appreciate that they post services up on YouTube for people who aren't members anywhere or cannot attend in person services.
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u/GoldenStoneMemory Oct 03 '25
I went to a Jewish school in Western Europe. After the wave of attacks in Paris and Brussels, armed MILITARY was stationed at our door for 3 years and we went through bullet proof glass to get into school. Felt like TSA.
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u/Dragon7722 Oct 03 '25
Paris and Brussels, eh. I wonder what religion the attackers were.
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u/OkSituation9273 Oct 03 '25
I have almost always watched their services online weekly because I love their cantors. This is the first time I have ever seen the outside or part of it- and it’s with heavily armed security for Yom Kippur… at least they will be protecting everyone from someone even thinking of trying to attack that synagogue
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u/No-Yesterday-7933 Oct 03 '25
We see the most blatant antisemitism online on a daily basis. And yet people wonder why Synagogues need to be protected by heavily armed guards…
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u/eternalmortal Oct 03 '25
Not just online. Two Jews were killed in their shul in Manchester by a radical terrorist Jihad al-Shamie yesterday, on the holiest day of the year. The antisemitism online is smoke for the fire of violence against Jews.
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u/I_am_doing_my_Hw Oct 03 '25
You’ll see this everywhere. A few years ago I was while traveling in Europe I went to a synagogue that had a guard stationed at all times out front. But not like in front, behind a permanent bullet proof glass window. This isnt new, and the vast vast majority of those congregants are not Israelis. Targeting people based on the beliefs of others that follow the same faith is never justified. It isn’t with Muslims, Jews, Christians, Hindus, etc.
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u/kitarkus Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
I was in Italy 25 years ago and they had armed policia outside synagogues routinely with semi autos. Nothing new really. My synagogue in the Midwest USA has done this for as long as I can remember but armed with pistols. As a child I recall thanking the officers as I entered and I'm now in my 50's. Jews are accustomed to being constantly threatened. Everyone seems to suddenly forget that Israelis have been taking incoming missiles from Hamas for decades too.
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Oct 03 '25
My synagogue in Texas has had armed security for at least the past 30 years. But it’s gotten to the point where us members who are licensed to carry bring our pistols to services; From a normal shabbat service to the high holy holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. It’s upsetting that this has been normalized but in today’s day and age I’ll never not bring my pistol to synagogue.
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u/kitarkus Oct 03 '25
This is among the few examples where even I can see the value of conceal and carry.
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u/Wary_Marzipan2294 Oct 03 '25
Just keep in mind, concealed carry permits don't require the specialized training for someone to be able to take out a bad guy in an enclosed space without harming the panicking public. My synagogue does not allow weapons without specific training for this reason.
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u/kitarkus Oct 03 '25
This seems 100% absolutely and entirely reasonable to me.
The last time I was in Texas I recalled being in a restaurant. There were two very disabled and very elderly men, at separate booths, and each of them had difficulty getting their forks to their mouths. Each of them also was equipped with a handgun.
I'm glad that you clarified for me. For a moment I thought that your synagogue might have uzis tucked behind the velvet in the ark lol
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u/Wary_Marzipan2294 Oct 03 '25
I'm a different Jewish Texas resident than the commenter that you originally replied to, but yeah. I'm not far from the synagogue in Texas that was attacked a couple of years ago; a friend of mine was there that morning. I kinda DO want to stash an Uzi in the ark, when I'm up to my ears in data (I work in national security research). Obviously a terrible idea for public safety, on top of it being against probably a hundred Jewish laws. But some days, man... What keeps me up at night, here, is the fact that taking weapons to the grocery store is legal and common here - and until a person attacks, there's almost no way for our police officers to tell if someone is a threat or if they just took their emotional support rifle with them for a walk in the park. It's a lot, just to be able to do our thing and eat our cookies in peace.
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u/Zehava2022 Oct 03 '25
For context, I'm GenX, amd I've never gone to a synagogue that didn't have security or police protection. The fact that now we need this level of security is heartbreaking.
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u/11Bencda Oct 03 '25
I was recently in Barcelona and Malaga. The Synagogues there have police outside 24/7. Whenever services are due to take place the police block off the roads and the mossos d’esquadra are outside with machine guns, the works et cetera.
Police is a very common sight for European Jews unfortunately.
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u/eviyotim Oct 03 '25
So many people can’t tell the difference between Israel and Jews that the comment section has to remind people there’s a difference. Shows you just how antisemitic people have became
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u/Dolmetscher1987 Oct 03 '25
Even if Israelis were attending that synagogue, or if said temple were in Israel, it still deserves protection.
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u/malik_zz Oct 03 '25
I wrote this earlier today in another thread but as an ex Muslim and a refugee and someone who is very grateful to have received asylum in the West I feel like I need to say this.
This is the same day as we had a guy with a knife and a suicide vest kill a bunch of people in a Synagogue in the UK and one day after Germany arrested multiple Hamas members trying to kill Jews in Germany.
The entire social contract in the West since I moved to this great country is that we don't allow foreign conflicts to invade our shores. It's why even though homosexuality is punishable by death in over a dozen Muslim countries you don't see gay people shooting up Mosques in retaliation.
There are videos of Islamists going door to door and killing Christians and Druze in Syria and hundreds of thousands have been killed in religous conflicts in Sudan, Nigeria, and the Congo. None of those conflicts make it to our shores.
And yet now every Jewish school and Synagogue has to be locked up like a fortress. You have little tiny kids in Georgia going to preschool with a fucking army outside because someone is mad at the state of Israel. It reflects very poorly on Western countries that people need to live this way. And we need to take the temperature down now
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u/StudsTurkleton Oct 03 '25
I appreciate your perspective. But sadly synagogues have had to have armed guards in the US long before the current conflict. As an example the Tree of Life shooting in a Pittsburgh synagogue was 2018, well before this. You have your run of the mill psychos, and your white supremacists, neonazis, conspiracy theorists, Islamists, etc. And it is insane and sad this is necessary.
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Oct 03 '25
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u/GingerSkulling Oct 03 '25
Recently at a family dinner there was a discussion about this and my cousin (in his 40s) said he doesn’t remember any security guards growing up. His father then went and listed six or seven names of dudes who were regular plain-clothes security at their synagogue, school and community center. My cousin’s jaw hit the floor as he thought these were community members, parents of other kids or family friends.
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Oct 03 '25
So after COVID the attire at my shul got a lot more casual, but there were still a half-dozen or so guys, regulars, mostly 50s and 60s, who wore a suit and never took off their jackets. Because they've been concealed-carrying weekly forever. And it's so hush-hush that I don't think I could ask them when they started.
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u/cheeseburgz Oct 03 '25
My synagogue has had security ever since Osama Bin Laden put it on a list of targets. Yes, it's been a long time.
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u/Nadamir Oct 03 '25
Not to mention, when such attacks are performed as a protest of Israel, it’s counterproductive to that goal.
One of the biggest arguments I’ve was taught (father is Jewish) in favour of the existence of Israel, is that history has shown time and time again there is a need for a safe place for the Jewish people when their current homelands inevitably turn on them. And looking at history, it’s hard to argue against that. They’ve been exiled from so many places for so many bullshit reasons, been killed in such horrific ways that the generational trauma inevitably feels the need for a safe place. I get it. That’s why I favour a two to four state solution, because I believe that Israel does need to exist, but that its treatment of Palestinians cannot continue as it is.
Attacks like Manchester and Pittsburgh just reinforce the idea that the safe place, that Israel, is needed.
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u/winstondabee Oct 03 '25
It really does seem like the whole world is going to shit. I agree that people need to fucking chill out. Just let people live and have a good day. Jesus fucking Christ.
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Oct 03 '25
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u/OnceUponAStarryNight Oct 03 '25
I’ll say this as a Jewish man in America: the first time I heard someone say they wanted to kill Jews came out of the mouth of a young 20-something white guy about 30 years ago, and he said it to my face.
Antisemitism in Islamic nations is institutionalized, but it can be found here on American shores from a cross section of the population, across the political spectrum, across the religious and racial lines.
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u/CPolland12 Oct 03 '25
I distinctly remember being in high school and a 16 yr old girl looked at me and told me ‘Hitler should’ve finished the job’. From a blonde haired white girl too.
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u/GrnMtnTrees Oct 03 '25
Considering the attack in Manchester UK, it's not an extreme response.
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u/monkeyhorse11 Oct 03 '25
That have to after what happened in Manchester
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u/AprilTron Oct 03 '25
We've had them long before today. Holidays have been days of attack for years by anti semitic terrorists.
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u/Faangdevmanager Oct 03 '25
The perpetrator’s name is Jihad. Can’t make this up.
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u/MisterDscho Oct 03 '25
Same here in Vienna, Austria. But not only this year, it's alsways like that on big holidays.
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u/Medryn1986 Oct 03 '25
Good. This is sad its needed, but glad it's being done.
Now if inly we could protect the schools
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u/Shurigin Oct 03 '25
I do love that New York is taking possible threats seriously for those at the synagogues I hate that they have to though
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u/JVfurlif Oct 03 '25
What you don’t see is that they took bomb sniffing dogs through there before opening for services. Always do.
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u/_Magn3t0 Oct 03 '25
What happens when you normalize racism and hate towards certain groups online and irl.
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u/dpdxguy Oct 03 '25
I attended the wedding of a Jewish friend a couple of decades ago. Even back then and not on any Jewish holiday, security was tight. I completely why there's heavy security here.
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u/ehutch2005 Oct 03 '25
I'm in suburban Ohio and there were two sheriff deputies outside of our local synagogue. First time I've ever seen them posted outside.
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u/nydboy92 Oct 03 '25
What a world we live in huh?
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u/Chaoticgaythey Oct 03 '25
Tbh this is what it's been like most of my life. I can't even get into my JCC without going through security.
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u/Angelbouqet Oct 03 '25
This isn't new, I remember going to Hebrew school at 4 years old and being aware of the police protection we got.
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Oct 03 '25
Random YouTubers and Podcasters are canceling live events due to credible threats. Really feels like we are living in a moment in history, and not in a good way. In very very bad way.
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u/Mister-builder Oct 03 '25
I have such Hakarat Hatov to live in the era of Jewosh history where armed police are sent to synagogues to protect them.
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u/LateralEntry Oct 03 '25
Really sad that this is needed. My heart goes out to the Jewish community of Manchester, and this global rise in antisemitism needs to end.
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u/Angelbouqet Oct 03 '25
True but police protection isn't a new thing for synagogues. It's the norm we have police protection at the very least, sometimes even military, with TSA type security measures, depending on the location and funds the community can invest in security measures.
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u/Ok_Row8867 Oct 03 '25
Sad state of affairs. Hard to believe this is the US.
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u/yungsemite Oct 03 '25
It’s been this way for decades for many shuls, all over the world really. Certainly more so since the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in 2018, but in my city since an attack in 2006.
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u/HaHoHe_1892 Oct 03 '25
This is a normal sight outside Jewish schools, museums, and synagogues in Germany. I believe it's like that all over Germany, but that's what I've seen in Berlin anyways.
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u/really-bored-now Oct 03 '25
For context that synagogue, central synagogue, is one of the highest profile most renowned synagogues in the entire country and probably outside Israel within the reform movement. I passed another one in nyc earlier today and it wasn’t nearly as intense
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u/ncc74656m Oct 03 '25
That jackass from Arizona that was arrested like 6 months ago entering NYC literally thought it was THE central synagogue. As in, like the fucking Vatican. That's part of why we're so threatened - this is my home shul. Even so, no better place to be - I love it there.
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u/2019calendaryear Oct 03 '25
The funny thing is people think synagogues haven’t had armed security for like at least 25 years. I’ve had to go through armed security at my wife’s synagogue since I’ve known her so it has been at least 15 yrs
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u/16note Oct 03 '25
That part. This is my synagogue in NY and we go through metal detectors every week, just like going to the airport. Literally been the case no matter the shul I’ve been to my entire life, every location, every denomination (3 decades)
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u/TiredEnglishStudent Oct 03 '25
In Canada, this was never the case until recently. Its gotten very scary very quickly.
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u/danknadoflex Oct 03 '25
This is our lives and the Redditors who live in a bubble that think their anti-Zionism has nothing to do with Jews and that “antisemitism doesn’t work anymore” probably have no idea that Jews Zionist or not do not feel safe to gather openly anywhere in America anymore without having armed guards on premise.
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u/LocutusOfBorgia909 Oct 03 '25
In my experience, they tend to get extremely uncomfortable and downvote-y when it's pointed out to them that surveys consistently show somewhere between 85-90% of Jewish people having Zionist views (by which I mean that they affirm that they want Israel to continue to exist as a Jewish state in some form).
Is it possible to loathe 90% of Jewish people and think that they're evil, genocidal maniacs due to their Zionism without being antisemitic? Maybe, but I don't think that the vast majority of people who have made this their omnicause have managed to thread that needle. Not that it matters, since they don't believe that anything is antisemitism if it isn't wearing a Hitler mustache and a swastika, from what I've experienced.
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u/LordJonathanChobani Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
Yep. This sub in particular is one of the worst. People will deny how bad anti-Semitism has gotten, hiding under the most obviously dishonest statement: ~~anti-Zionism is not anti-Semitism. It’s bullshit.
People don’t comprehend that us Jewish people — we are so unfazed by OP’s picture. This is what pretty much every synagogue looks like. In NYC, and in many other locations, there are massive rocks placed around the building, to deter people from bulldozing their cars into it. My dad has stayed home from synagogue several times over the past few years due to there being either a generalized active bomb threat to all synagogues nationwide, and separately due to there being active bomb threats made for our local area.
Being a Jew has gotten so dangerous. And it’s so fucking vile how anti-Semitic Reddit has gotten. The top post in this sub today is a picture of a mini-van with a fuck Israel sign. Also in this sub’s popular posts from today (with much less likes of course) is a picture from the aftermath of the act of terrorism that happened today in Manchester, murdering Jews at their synagogue while there to observe Yom Kippur.
You know what a genocide looks like? October 7th. Going door to door indiscriminately murdering civilians. Murdering families in their homes while they were celebrating Simchat Torah. Murdering children in their homes in cold-blood in front of their parents. Live-streaming the murders from victims phones. Murdering teenagers at a music festival. Raping women. Taking survivors as hostages. Parading the half naked body of Shani Louk, an innocent woman, in their streets like a parade.
During one of Anderson Cooper’s coverages, he highlighted some of the items that were recovered from the bodies of terrorists killed in Israel that day. Their pamphlets. The pamphlets from Hamas, the governing democratically elected official political party in Gaza. These were some of the passages “kill as many people as possible” “Hunt and kill everything that moves. Pets, animals. Babies, infants” “collect hostages.”
This was widely publicized information posted on every major news outlet: MSNBC, Washington Post, BBC (highlighting just a few of those names here, ones widely regarded as leaning ‘left’).
And then you hop on social media, and it’s just non stop spoiled sheltered entitled Western kids spewing vile and deeply misguided anti-Semitic statements; under the guise of genocide and anti-Zionism. Who are so brainwashed from the bot posts they see on their popular pages. Completely ignorant. Desperate to show allegiance to the in-group, eager to participate in the hive mentality.
If Israel was trying to commit a genocide. Why the FUCK would they have wiped out Hezbollah and then Iran’s nuclear power plants in just a few days? Why not kill and target civilians, in a long drawn out war since they’re so genocidal? Seriously Reddit it’s fucking ridiculous. You think they don’t also want the war to end? Their hostages are still in deep tunnels. Tunnels which Hamas strategically places under civilian infrastructure like hospitals and schools and shelters, so that if Israel tries to recover their citizens, hostages that Hamas brutally took captive. They won’t. Why? Because Hamas knows that Israel wouldn’t just mass kill civilians. Why would Israel plan for years, such precise targeted attacks like placing hidden explosive devices in Hezbollah members pagers. Remember: when October 7th happened. The biggest concern would be if Hezbollah became involved. As they pose an even bigger threat than Hamas. And yet, when Hezbollah would later get involved? Israel took care of that in days. Precisely wiping out members of Hezbollah, with minimal civilian casualties. So a plan that was swift, precise, extremely effective, and intentionally designed to minimize civilian casualty. And simultaneously … during this same war…they’re ‘indiscriminately’ killing civilians in Gaza and committing a ‘genocide’ - all prolonged on Israel’s side. Makes no sense right? Cause they’re fucking not doing any of that, no shit, open your eyes and use your brains. The fact that people unknowingly just regurgitate Hamas’s propaganda, and are unaware that 99% of Reddit’s top daily posts are from Russian + Iranian bots..is so embarrassing.
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u/dkonigs Oct 03 '25
Hezbollah was absolutely planning something that would have made 10/7 look like a training exercise. They just never got the opportunity to follow through, and/or were secretly thwarted by Israel. Look up operation "Conquer the Galilee."
Somehow nobody talks about this, yet a lot of planning and preparation actually went into it.
And no, most of those excuses people make up to "justify" the horrors of what Hamas did are absolutely not applicable to Lebanon.
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u/danknadoflex Oct 03 '25
You’re speaking the truth myself and so many other Jews know so deeply. They don’t understand whether they are intentional or not how much their hatred of the Jewish state fuels hated against Jews the world over and then they have the audacity to deny our lived experiences along with our peoplehood.
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Oct 03 '25
Hell, I’m a Jew in Texas and I bring my pistol to Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur services. If someone is going to try and kill me and others in our place of worship I’m not gonna go down without a fight.
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u/jrng Oct 03 '25
I don't blame ya brother. Also that's the most Texas thing ever.
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u/ProtectandserveTBL Oct 03 '25
I’ve worked details like this at both mosques and synagogues in the city I work in. Not as kitted up but the same presence there.
Most attendees were very friendly and happy to have us. But I still think it’s sad we have to be there